A prominent sports media insider believes that NBC could consider a big-name replacement for Cris Collinsworth when his contract expires.
Cris Collinsworth took over as the lead analyst on NBC “Sunday Night Football” in 2009 following John Madden’s retirement. Collinsworth worked with Al Michaels from 2009 to 2021 before Mike Tirico replaced Michaels in play-by-play.
According to Jimma Traina of Sports Illustrated, Collinsworth is believed to have 1-2 years left on his deal with NBC. Traina suggested that the network could eye FOX Sports analyst and former Pro Bowl tight end Greg Olsen as Collinsworth’s replacement:
“Greg Olsen getting bumped for Tom Brady is tough because Olsen was so good and earned the No. 1 analyst role. And Olsen has made it clear that he wants to be a No. 1 analyst somewhere. He reiterated this point with me on a recent SI Media With Jimmy Traina episode…
That leaves NBC and Sunday Night Football. The network booted Al Michaels for Mike Tirico a couple of years ago. Would it go for a full booth revamp and try to swap in Olsen for Cris Collinsworth?
Collinsworth, 65, is reportedly under contract with NBC for either one or two more years. I would think a Tirico-Olsen booth has to sound enticing to NBC. Would the network, though, want to remain loyal to Collinsworth, who has been with NBC since 2006?”
Cris Collinsworth is one of the more polarizing NFL analysts, but there’s no indicator that NBC wants to move on from the former Cincinnati Bengals WR. And even if he left NBC, someone would surely move quickly to pick him up.
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Olsen was FOX Sports’ No. 1 commentary team analyst with Kevin Burkhardt and Erin Andrews for two seasons. But Olsen was moved to the No. 2 team with Joe Davis for 2024, with Tom Brady set to begin his 10-year, $375 million deal with FOX (on their No. 1 team) this year.
ESPN signed longtime FOX employees Joe Buck and Troy Aikman to lucrative deals in 2022, and Traina added that Kirk Herbstreit has three more years with Amazon Prime Video on “Thursday Night Football.”
So, as Traina noted, NBC might be Olsen’s best bet for becoming a No. 1 analyst.
Cris Collinsworth Returns To The Mic In 2 Weeks
On Sept. 5, Cris Collinsworth will be back in the broadcast booth when he and Tirico begin their third full season together on NBC.
The two will be on the call for the annual Kickoff Game, when the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs welcome Lamar Jackson and his Baltimore Ravens to Arrowhead Stadium.
After that, they’ll call the Detroit Lions-Los Angeles Rams “Sunday Night Football” game on Sept. 8 in a rematch of the 2023 Wild Card Round.
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